Carriage-wrench



(No Model.)

F. A. WBGNBR.

CARRIAGE WRENCH. No. 890,731. Patented 001'.. 9, 1888.

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PUNTTED STATES PATENT Trios@ FREDERICK A. VEGNER, OF THREE RIVERS,MICHIGAN.

CARRIAGE-WRENCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 390,731, dated October9, 1888.

Serial No. 250,240. (No model.)

To all whom it may con/cern:

Beit known that I, FREDERICK A. WEG-NER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Three Rivers, county of St. Joseph, State of Michigan,haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Carriage-Vrenehes; and[declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of theinvention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itappertains to make and use the saine, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in carriage-wrenches, and has forits object the provision of an improved wrench'of novel construction,s'uch that the wrench may be readily attached to the carriage or wagonwheel to be removed in such a manner as to engage the nut within the hubof the wheel, said wrench adapted to retain the nutand washer inposition within the hub while the wheel is detached from the spindle,the wrench to be turned for running the nutoff and on by turning thewheel.

In carrying out inyinvention, Figure l is a side elevation of a wheelwith my improved wrench attached thereto; Fig. 2, an edge elevation ofthe same; Fig. 3, a perspective View of my improved wrench, and Fig. 4,a detail view of parts.

A represents an ordinary wagon or carriage wheel; B, its spokes, and Cits hub.

D represents the head of my improved wrench; and D', the sockets thereinfor engaging the nut.

E represents a spring passed through an opening, e, in the wrench-head,and provided with hooks E at its outer ends,adapted to engage the spokesB of the wheel. The opening c is made,preferably,of a cylindrical formand with grooves e e upon its opposite sides.

E represents recesses ont in the sides of the spring.

F represents semi-cylindrical blocks,adapted to t within the opening ealong the sides of the spring E.

G represents a set-screw. The diameter of the cylindrical opening e ispreferably'a little less than the width of the spring E; but the groovese are of sufficient depth to increase the diameter of the opening so asto permit the admission of the spring therein.

Blocks F are preferably 'provided with orilicesf, and the spring E withpins f for engaging the same. One end of the spring is inserted withinthe opening e with its edges within the grooves e,and the blocks Fadjusted in place upon the spring, when said spring may .be pushedthrough the opening as far as the recesses E2, when it may be rotated soas to engage the shoulders E3 upon the sides of the wrench-head. Setscrew G is then turned so as to hold the spring E rmlyin place. Hooks Emay now be attached to the ends of the spring in any suitable manner, asby rivets e2. These hooks are preferably covered with rubber or cloth toprevent them from scratching or marring the paint upon the spokes of thewheel. The wrenchhead is preferably constructed with two sizes ofsockets at its ends to fit different-sized nuts, and in 'use thesetscrew G may be loosened and the spring ro tated, so as to bring thehooks into the proper position for using either the larger or thesmaller end of the wrench-head, when the screw may be tightened so as toretain the parts in position.

The operation of my device is as follows: The operator inserts the endof the wrench head within the rim of the hub, so as to engage thc n ut.The ends of spring E are then bent down and hooks E engaged under thespokes, as shown in the drawings. The wheel may then be turned in theproper direction, carrying the wrench with it,and thus unscrewing thenut, when the wheel may be removed, and With it the wrench, and the nutand washerin place within the hub. The lubricant may now be appliedeither within the hub or upon the spindle, as desired, and the wheelreplaced and rotated in the opposite direction, thus securing the nut inplace upon the spindie, when the hooks E may be disengaged and thewrench removed. In the use of wrenches as ordinariiy constructed theoperator is compelled, first,to take off the nut separately and then'thewheel, atmost invariably dropping off either the nut or the Washer tothe ground in doing so. This is a source of much annoyance to theoperator, as it necessitates the replacing of the nut or washer by hand,a very"`disagrceable operation, as they are always more or less coveredwith grease, and such replacement occasions the soiling of the hands andoften the clothing of the operator. The nut or Washer is also liable tobecome covered with sand or dust, and when replaced within the wheelthis sand works out along the spindle and destroys the bearings thereon.Another objection to the use of ordinary styles of Wrenches is that theremoval of the nut and the wheel and their replacement separatelyconsumes a considerable amount of time and is necessarily a tedionsoperation. \Vith my improvement, however, all these objections areeffectnally overcome, as it is only necessary to attach the wrench tothe wheel, and then to spin the wheel around to disengage the nut, whenthe wheel, wrench, nut, and washer all come off together. The tension ofthe spring; retains the nut and Washer firmly in place Within the hnb,thus preventing the nut and washer from being dropped by the operatorand the consequent admission of sand and dirt to the bearing surfaces.The operation of oilinga wagon or carriage may thus be much more quicklyaccomplished and without the liability of soiling the hands and clothingof the operator.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim ism l. In acarriage-Wrench, a wrench head having sockets of different diameters anda spring passed through said Wrench-head,sub stantially as described.

2. In a carriage-wrench, the combination, with the Wrench-head D, ofaspring, E, having hooks E and recesses E2, filling-blocks F, and setscrew G, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I sign this specification in the presence of twowitnesses.

FREDERICK A. VEGNER.

Witnesses:

O. F. BEAN, FRED. VVEGNER, Sr.

